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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. board — a committee
  6. can — a tin
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. stock — shares
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. cold — not warm
  17. can — to be able to
  18. board — to get on
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. can — a tin
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. stock — goods

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com